Spanish Phantom

ANTONIO Banderas is taking part in the production of a Spanish-language version of Andrew Lloyd Weber's hit musical The Phantom of the Opera.

Lloyd Webber and Banderas teamed up a while ago with the aim of producing theatre, musicals and live entertainment shows for Spanish-speaking markets via their new company Amigos Para Siempre (friends forever). The Spanish version of The Phantom of the Opera, with music by Andrew Lloyd Webber and lyrics by Charles Hart and Richard Stilgoe, is expected to premiere on October 4, at the UMusic Hotel Teatro Albeniz in Madrid.

the 9th International Spanish Language Congress in Cadiz - little did they realise they would attract the head of state to join in. As the King and Queen ar- rived at the theatre for the opening show, Tiempo de Luz, they got out of their car and were immediately intrigued by the box-playing cajoneada.

The Queen and King then approached the two available boxes and Felipe VI briefly played one, joining in and singing the rumba Ali oh "The first cajon-playing king," proclaimed Guille, one of the percussionists who led the performance of 62 separate boxes - or cajones. The Instituto Cervantes and the Cadiz City Council organised the cajoneada to commemorate the origin of the cajon flamenco.

Members of the public attending the event were also free to join in.

The model, actress, TV presenter and scriptwriter hired a surrogate to bear her a baby daughter in Miami, USA.

Best known outside Spain for her role in Bolero alongside Bo Derek, Obregon lost her 27-year-old son Alejandro Lequio to cancer in 2020.

At the time she was comforted by old friends, King Emetrius Juan Carlos and Queen Sofia. Now she has said she has recovered ‘the excitement to live’ after the arrival of her new daughter.

Hiring a surrogate mother is illegal in Spain, however, there are agencies that allow wealthy families to ‘order’ a kid from Eastern European countries and the USA. Obregón is being highly criticised online and on some Spanish TV programmes.

People have also pointed out how she left the hospital in a wheelchair as if she had given birth to the baby herself.

Feline fantastic

A TOTAL of 43 new Iberian lynx cubs have been born throughout 2022 in different breeding centres managed by National Parks across Spain.

The breeding season ended with the successful birth of seven cubs in the Doñana National Park (Huelva). A further nine cubs were born in Zarza de Granadilla; 14 in La Olivilla; 10 in Silves and three in Jerez Zoo. Additionally, last year saw a total of 33 lynx released into the wild at a national level as part of the Iberian Lynx Ex situ Conservation Programme.